Minox Totally Explained

Everything about Minox totally explained

Minox is the brand name of a spycamera and Minox GmbH is the name of the company which has produced after WWII. The camera commonly associated with the Minox name is the sub-miniature series using the 8x11mm film format, first designed by Walter Zapp in 1936 and made by Valsts Electrotechniska Fabrika in Riga in 1938, henced called the Riga Minox. The Minox company, in Germany, has made these along with various 35 mm cameras, binoculars, etc after WWII.

History

The archetypal sub-miniature camera, the Minox, was invented by Walter Zapp in 1936. Zapp, a Baltic German, was born in 1905 in Riga, then part of the Russian Empire. The family moved to Reval (now called Tallinn, Estonia) where he first took a job as an engraver before finding a position with a photographer. He became friends with Nikolai 'Nixi' Nylander and Richard Jürgens, and it was through discussions with these friends that the idea of a camera that could always be carried came to him. Nixi Nylander also coined the name MINOX and drawn up the Minox mouse logo. Jürgens funded the original project but wasn't able to get support in Estonia for production. Jürgens contacted an English representative of the VEF electrotechnical manufacturing concern in Riga who then arranged a meeting where Zapp demonstrated the Minox prototype (UrMinox), with a set of enlargements made from Ur-Minox negative. Production began in Riga at VEF, running from 1937 until 1943. The Riga Minox has a stainless steel body, equipped with a parallax correcting viewfinder, a Cooke triplet type Minostgmat 15 mm/3.5 lens, dual blade lens front shutter, and telescoping film advance mechanism. Riga Minox measurement: 80 mm x27mm x 16 mm;weight: 130g, the heaviest of all Minox 8x11 cameras,due to its steel body.
After World War II, production of aluminium body Minox II was resumed in 1948 at a new company, Minox GmbH, in Wetzlar, West Germany. The sales of Minox spy camera peaked in the 60s with the introduction of Minox B, Minox's best seller ever.
Minox was acquired by Leica in 1996, but a management buyout in August 2001 left Minox an independent company again. Although primarily marketed as a luxury item, the Minox was also used as an espionage camera. Its close-focusing lens and small size made it perfect for covert uses such as surveillance or document copying. The Minox was used by both Axis and Allied intelligence agents during World War II. Later versions were used well into the 1980s. The Soviet spy John A. Walker Jr., whose actions against the US Navy cryptography programs represent some of the most compromising intelligence actions against the United States during the Cold War era, used a Minox C to photograph documents and ciphers. An 18 inch measuring chain was provided with most Minox cameras, which enabled easy 8x10 or 8.5x11 inch document copying. The espionage use of the Minox has been portrayed in Hollywood movies, and some Minox marketing efforts have played up the "spy camera" story.

Minox 8x11 cameras

The Minox cameras project an image of 8x11mm on to the negative. The film is in strips 9.2mm wide, or less than one-quarter the size of 35mm film, and unlike 35 mm film, it has no sproket holes. This film strip is rolled up on a supply spool in the supply side chamber of a small twin chamber cartridge, with the film leader taped to a takeup spool in the take up chamber; the film strips can be up to 50 frames in length for Riga Minox and Minox II, III, IIIs and B, from Minox BL and C onward, the Minox film cartridge holds, 15, 30, or 36 exposures. Early Minox cameras from Minox II to earlier Minox B were equipped with a four element three group Complan lens designed by ex- Leica lens designer Arthur Seibert. The Complan lens has a curved film plane, hence in these cameras, the negative must be held in an arc to improve the edge-to-edge sharpness of the image. The Minox enlarger also holds the negative in this same curve. Later models, began with late model Minox B to the current model TLX, using the 15 mm/3.5 4 element 3 group flat field MINOX lens, and the negative was held flat.
   The early Minox cameras from Riga to Minox B and BL, were equipped with mechanical shutter, later model Minox cameras have electromagnetic shutter. When closed, the viewfinder and lens windows are protected. Complan lens and Minox lens are unit focusing lens, focusing from 8 inches (20cm) to infinity through precision gear linked to a focusing dial on top of the camera. All Minox cameras except the EC has parallax correction viewfinder,when the focusing dial moves, the viewfinder moves in tandem to correct for parallax. From the Riga to Minox B, the film counter counts up to 50, from Minox BL, C to CLX, the film counter counts down from 36/30/15. For mechanical Minox 8x11 cameras, a separate shutter speed dial sets the shutter speed from 1/2 to 1/1000 second, plus B and T(BL has no T). For electromagnetic Minoxs, the shutter dial starts with 1/15 sec end with 1/1000(Minox C), or starts with 1/30 and ends with 1/2000 (Minox LX/TLX/CLX); the electromagnetic Minox camera also has an 'A' setting for automatic exposure, controlled by the built in exposure meter. Above the viewfinder is a filter bar used to slide a green or an orange filter in front of the lens, start with BL, there's only a ND filter. For Riga Minox to Minox B, the film advances each time the camera is closed, regardless whether a picture is taken or not. Opening the camera causes pressure plate to press the film into a concave or flat(depending on the model ) surface to stiffen thin emulsions for better clarity. When push to close a Minox, the pressure plate moves back from the film plane, thus allow the film strip to move freely to advance the film to next frame. From Minox BL onward, the camera is equipped with a "freewheeling" mechanism, such that the film advances one frame only when a picture is taken, otherwise, closing the camera doesn't advance a frame. Minox BL uses a PX625 button cell to power the CdS exposure meter; Minox C, LX, EC, used 5.6v PX27 mercury battery to power the exposure meter and electromagnetic shutter, TLX, CLX,ECX use four 1.5v 386 silver oxide button cell in an adapter; this adapter combo can also be used to replaced the discontinued 5.6v PX27 battery for Minox C, LX and EC.
   The Riga Minox camera, the gold Minox and silver Minox and black Minox are collector's items. Newer electronic versions, such as the Minox TLX, remain in production, essentially unchanged in features from the LX model since the 1970s.
   Minox 8x11 camera is quite versatile, it can be attached to a Minox copy stand for document copying. It also can be attached to binocular for tele-photography, or attached to the ocular of a microscope for microphotography. Image:MinoxBL.jpg|Minox BL Image:MinoxC-1.jpg|Minox C Image:LX Platin.JPG}Minox LX Platin Image:MINOX CLX.jpg|Minox CLX Image:GermanMinoxClubEC.jpg|1st German Minox Club EC in Riga blue color Image:Minoxcopystand.jpg|Minox C attached to a Minox copystand Image:Tele Minox.JPG|Minox BL attached to a 8x35 binocular Image:Minox TLX w microscope.JPG|Minox TLX attached to a 400x microscope

Major production runs

Riga (attempts to call this Model I failed)
A (Europe there was no distinction made between the three A models)
II
III
IIIs - flash synch
B - ultralight aluminium shell, selenium meter, produced from 1958 to 1972
C - introduced in 1969, electronic, used by spy John A. Walker, Jr.
BL - 1972 with cadmium sulphide meter (requiring a battery), no longer winds film with each open/close cycle
LX - electronic, in anodized aluminium, black aluminium, gold and platinum finish.
EC
ECX, replacing EC
TLX, titanium titanal eloxat coated
CLX, chrome plated, limited edition

Special edition runs

AX - similar in size the A (all mechanical) and built from BL parts with an LX shell, versions in chrome, black and gold

LX Sterling - 925 sterling silver hallmarked

LX Selection - gold with black dials

LX Gold II - anniversary edition, all gold, with Walter Zapp's signature

LX Platin - Limited edition platinum Minox LX

CLX - with Walter Zapp's signature

LX 2000 - brass black anodized with gold trim

Aviator - black anodized with luminous dials, logo and script limited edition of 300

MHS EC - Minox Historical Society

EC with MHS logo limited edition of 100

MinoxClub EC -1st German Minox club

EC in Riga blue with club logo, limited edition of 111.

LX 100th Anniversary Edition - polished chrome with Walter Zapp's commemorative coin

Minox 8x11 accesories

Minox tripod, ver 1 and 2

Minox tripod adapter for Riga, II,IIIs, B,BL,C

Minox copy stand

Minox waist level finder

Minox 90 degree mirror

Minox film slitter

Minox projectors

Minox enlargers

Minosix selenium exposure meter

Minox flashgun

Minox electronic flash

Minox binocular adapter

Minox microfilm reader

Minox daylight development tank with thermometer

Minox negative viewer and cutter

Minox film sleeves

Minox battery adapter, for replacement of discontinued PX27 5.6v mercury battery used in electromagnetic Minox cameras.

Minox 35

In 1974 Minox introduced a very compact(101mm x62mm x35mm), glass fibre re enforced Makrolon bodied 35 mm camera designed by Professor Fischer of Vienna University: the Minox EL, the first one in Minox 35 mm series. These compact cameras featured a drawbridge style lens cover which when lowered brought forward a 35 mm focal length f/2.8 four element 3 group Tessar type Minotar/Minoxar lens with between the lens leaf shutter and diaphram, a center positioned viewfinder, two stroke film winder lever and a film rewind knob. The camera offered aperture priority exposure with the option of manual settings, among them the Minox 35ML and Minox M.D.C offer program mode (P mode) exposure in addition to aperture priority. The 35 mm/2.8 Minotar/Minoxar lens was very sharp, with low distortion, the camera's metering-system's capability to produce excellent results especially under low-light conditions was outstanding - using exposure times of up to two minutes. Minox 35 camera back can be removed for loading or unloading film. All model has a 10 sec timer switch and a 2x backlit exposure switch. When the timer is engaged, a flashing LED indicates the timer counter is counting down, for the last two sec, the flash interval shortened.

Minox EL, 1974

MINOX GL, 1979-1981

MINOX GT 1981-1991

MINOX GT-Golf 1984

Minox GT-Sport All the above model use 5.6 v PX27 battery, can be replaced with two CR 1/3N 3V Lithium Battery with an adapter.

MINOX GT-E 1988-1993 with built in UV filter.

MINOX GSE 1991-1994

MINOX PL 1982-1983

MINOX ML 1985-1995

MINOX AL 1987-1988

MINOX AF 1988-1990

MINOX MB 1986-1999

MINOX MB Touring 1900

MINOX Goldknopf 1991-1993, with a solid gold button for shutter release.

MINOX M.D.C 1992-1995 This is the flag ship of Minox 35 mm series. MDC differs from all other models by its anodized aluminium shell over Macrolon body; with two styles: a gold plated model and a titanium coated model. MDC has a mulitcoated Minoxar 35 mm/2.8 lens, all other functions are identical to Minox 35ML. Due to the extra metal shell, the dimension of Minox M.D.C is slightly larger than other Minox 35 cameras.

MINOX MDC gold Collection 1993-1994

MINOX GT-X 1998-1999

MINOX GT-E(II) 1998-2001

MINOX GT-S 1998-2004

MINOX AF mini

MINOX AF-90 All the above, except ML, MDC uses 2x CR 1/3N 3V Lithium batteries or 6V SPX27 silver oxide battery. ML, MDC use 6V PX28 battery. Accessories for Minox 35 includes, UV filter, ND filter lens hood, eveready leather case and dedicated electronic flash.

Other products

MINOX 110S, a camera using the 110 film format were also once sold. Minox 110S has a Carl Zeiss Tessar 25 mm/2.8 unit focusing lens and a rangefinder-- the only camera with a rangefinder made by Minox.
Today, a range of digital cameras is offered along with binoculars and other optics. The few 35 mm cameras now offered are of the "point and shoot" style:

MINOX M*142

MINOX M*142 DB

MINOX CD-25 silver

MINOX CD-25 black

MINOX CD-29 silver

MINOX CD-29 black

MINOX CD-70 silver

MINOX CD-70 black

MINOX CD-112 silver

MINOX CD112 black

MINOX CD-128

MINOX CD-140

MINOX Edition 140

MINOX CD-150

MINOX CD-155 The original 8x11mm range is still in limited production as well. Minox has expanded its range of 8x11 models by offering cameras produced by Sharan Megahouse of Japan, rebadged with Minox logo.These are styled as miniatures of famous classic film cameras of the past, including:

Leica If

Leica IIIf

Leica M3

Rolleiflex TLR

Zeiss Contax I

Hasselblad SWC. The digital camera offerings also include similar miniatures:

Rolleiflex minidigi

Minox Leica DCC M3, 5MP, with SD card slot.Further Information

Get more info on 'Minox'.

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